Changes in Plans

As it sometimes happens with children, our schedules have recently been thrown to the wind. Which in Lubbock can mean that they're ripped out of your hands and then beat into your face. Sigh.

We are currently without childcare until June. Mommy dared to question the practices at our current (previous?) place & we were unceremoniously asked to leave. Danny & I were planning on enrolling Blake somewhere wonderful starting in the summer (thank goodness THAT has worked out), but now we're figuring out the next few months. Grammy is helping, which is truly a blessing. And, I think I will be able to rearrange my work stuff to accomodate everything.

In the meantime, Blake, Ava, & I are having a nice time all playing together! We are enjoying the parks and some of his toys that he rarely plays with. Fun times here! Keep us in your thoughts and prayers that something wonderful happens for us between now & June to help get everything worked out.....

Ready, Set, Fly!

This weekend marks the beginning of Spring Break. Not that I actually get Spring Break off automatically, but it's that time of year. We debated the possibility of a family vacation, but since Danny's switched departments at work, it's a hard time to miss a week of work for him. Instead, the kids & I are flying to Dallas to see Noni & Grandad. Blake, a seasoned flier, is so excited that he wants to get on a plane every day. Ava is a bit quieter, but I'm sure she is just as psyched.

I have to admit that I'm a bit nervous about this endeavor. I did something to prepare us that I didn't think I'd ever do....I bought Blake one of those monkey backpack thingies with a handle on the tail. Yeah, it's kinda like a leash. But, I'd rather that than losing him somewhere in an airport. I showed it to him recently & he happily strapped it on. He even wanted to take it to church. The only problem now is he's not too thrilled about me holding the end of his tail. Ava, of course, will be in the sling. I swear, I wish I had known about & done more babywearing with Blake. It is so soothing for both of us & I really think it's why she & I are so closely bonded. That SHOULD leave my hands pretty free to wrangle our stuff & the boy.....hopefully.

Once there, we have no specific plans. Blake will get to run around quite a bit at my parents' house since they have a fairly large yard. Ava will be held almost constantly. Which I'm sure she'll love. The only hard & fast thing we need to do is visit my grandmother who will be meeting Ava for the 1st time. Ava is the only great-granddaughter on that side of my family, so it's a neat experience for her.

So, wish us luck for the next week......we may need it! Of course, I can probably con one of the 8 million college girls who will be traveling into holding Ava while I buckle Blake into his seat. Pictures and updates when we return!

Superman and Batman

Blake's creativity and desire to carry on his "pretends" lately amazes me. He has recently become so entranced with Superman that he wants to watch his cartoons daily. Fine, right? Sure.....but he has also taken to calling himself "Superman." Again, fine. Add on that he has decided that I'm Lois (as in, Lane) and things get a little funny at our house. Unfortunately, he has now run out of characters for people to be. And, there's someone else in the house who's pretty important in Blake's life and to whom he is particularly attached....his Daddy. So who is Daddy? Batman of course! We have relinquished the notion of being called "Mommy" or "Daddy" any time in the near future. We are now "Mommy Lois" and "Daddy Batman." Possibly for forever.

A typical conversation at house sounds something like this lately:

"Put on your shoes, Blake."
"No, I Blake. I'm SHUPE-A-MAN!"
"OK Superman. Put on your shoes."
"OK Lois."

Or

"Lois.....Lois....LOIS!"
"Lois isn't here right now."
"Batman, where's Lois?"
"She's at work."
"Oh.....Lois at hospital?"
"Yes."

I have surely compromised the safety of Superman by revealing his secret identity, so I am hoping that no criminals are among my readers. Or that they realize the incredible protection our house has with both Superman AND Batman living under one roof.

I know there will come a time when pretending with Mommy & Daddy is not cool, so I'm treasuring these moments while they last. Ahh.....the joys of motherhood.